My Mother Nags!

by Samuel Chng

Regardless of how old you are, I am sure your mother nags.

If you would look at the order of the alphabets, 'n' comes after the 'm', and so it is probably very natural for a Mum to Nag!

Our mothers nag at us to eat our vegetables at age 2, wash our hands before eating at 5, to study and watch less tv at 12, about staying out late at night at 16 and what's more, to find a partner quickly at 25 or even at 35! It doesn't stop there...at 40, mums nag about the lack of grand children...and the list goes on.

So we see a mum who never stops nagging (sometimes we wonder whether where they get that energy from), but, in retrospect, have we looked further into it?

Everything that happens has a meaning or purpose behind it. Mothers are put in place by God to care, to be concerned and to guide us. In Matthew 20:21 we see Mother Zebedee who was concerned for her children and desired the best for them. She was also concerned for their spiritual welfare and future. 

As the song 'my mother's gentle love' goes, though our mothers may seem tough and fierce, they undeniably have a soft spot for their children. Nothing would pain them more to see their child going off track, immersing themselves in unspiritual and self-damaging ways of life, that is why they 'nag' at us, gently urging us to come back on the right path. It’s the love for the child within our mothers that lead them to speak to us about our behaviour.

Mothers (and fathers) shape the lives of children through the upbringing and also to a larger extent the 'naggings'. So is it fair to call them ‘naggings’?

Proverbs 31:26 aptly sums up our sentiments, "She openeth her mouth with wisdom; and in her tongue is the law of kindness." 

Personally, I would prefer to call it mother's caring rather than 'nagging'. As a child of my mother, deep down in my heart I know that my mum rattles on and on about my actions because she cares. From the great people in the Bible and also in history, we always see that the person behind these great people is their (even greater) mother! Indeed, the hand that rocks the cradle rules the world.

Lesson learnt: An 'nagging' mum is a loving mum!*

(Edelweiss Issue 4: October 2011)